An Angel In Leather
by casmydarling
Summary: When Castiel is mysteriously raised from perdition, everyone is curious as to how he got out. He certainly wasn't expecting the angel Diniel, or Dean, to have been the one who did the deed. I mean seriously, what kind of angel is obsessed with pie and would rather drive Cas' car than fly? (AU) Hunter!Cas and Angel!Dean. Eventual Destiel.
1. Lazarus Rising

**[A/N]: This is an alternate universe story where Castiel is a hunter who sold his soul so his brother Samandriel would live again and Dean is the angel of the lord who raised him from Hell. Samandriel is this case would be Sam. All quotes from Lazarus Rising and the characters do not belong to me, Kripke's a lucky man. **

**An Angel In Leather (AU)**

_"Sic 'em, boys."_

Samandriel barely had time to comprehend what was happening before he saw his brother and only living family left, Castiel, get ripped to shreds. The hellhounds were cruel and unforgiving, tearing into his flesh like no tomorrow. Blood pooled onto the floor around Castiel and before he knew it the life had disappeared from his bright blue eyes.

Now that Castiel was gone, Lilith turned towards Samandriel and tried to take him out with her demonic powers. In that moment Samandriel was sort of hoping that she had accomplished her goal of killing him, seeing as a life without his brother was a lonely and pointless one. However, due to some twisted fate, he had ended up surviving the blow and watched as Lilith smoked out of Ruby's old meat suit.

Once Lilith was taken care of, Samandriel dropped to his knees next to Castiel, not caring that his brother's blood was staining his jeans. He held onto Castiel's shoulder, his body rocking with sobs as he called out his name in vain. He simply couldn't be dead in Samandriel logic, he was the strong big brother who raised him and taught him how to be the best hunter he could be. But now he was dead, no longer breathing,_ gone._

Samandriel sat there for what felt like forever before he stood up with Castiel in his arms and slowly made his way outside. Later on, instead of giving him a hunter's funeral like Bobby insisted he buried him in a secluded area of a forest and marked his grave with a wooden cross.

#

"_Help_ - cough - _help_."

It was a hot September afternoon when Castiel was resurrected. His hand broke through the surface of the ground and soon the rest of him followed. Gasping for breath, he looked around at his surroundings, finding all of the trees around him knocked to ground. He was certain that they were probably standing before but pushed that aside for now.

He made his way passed the trees and found a road, traveling his way down it. Sometime during his walk the heat became too much and he had to take off his trench coat, wrapping it around his waist. He was surprised to find that his t-shirt and jeans were in one piece._ Didn't those hellhounds rip them to shreds?_ He thought to himself._ And why am I even still alive?_ None of it made any sense to him at all.

Luckily, Castiel didn't have to walk far before he came upon a dusty gas station in the middle of nowhere, the sun still beating down on him relentlessly. After calling out to see if anyone was in the area and getting no reply, he rolled his coat over his fist and punched through the glass window. Reaching his arm through the whole he made, Castiel swiftly unlocked the peeling green door and pushed it open. Once he was inside the slightly-cooler atmosphere of the gas station, the first thing he did was chug down a bottle of cold water before taking a glimpse at the newspaper to see where he was and figure out the date.

Castiel's eyes glinted with confusion as he read _September 18th, 2008_ exactly four months after his demon deal had come due. Dismissing this for later, he walked over to the dirty mirror hanging upon the wooden wall and examined his appearance. He was still baffled as to where and why all of his scars, as well as the hellhound wounds, had vanished. If he had somehow managed to crawl out of hell, wouldn't his body still be bloody and broken? Moving his left arm to run his hand through his hair, he cringed at the unexpected pain. Confused, he rolled his sleeve up to see a handprint burned into the skin of his deltoid, a quiet _"what"_ escaping his mouth.

Deciding to deal with everything later once he reached Bobby's house and found Samandriel, he went around gathering snacks and bottles of water from the station. Everything was silent, strangely so, until he went to grab the cash from the register (not that enjoyed doing that, he had never been comfortable with stealing) and the TV behind the counter had turned on. Its black and white screen was cracking due to a lack of signal, Castiel pressing the button to turn it off. However a few seconds later, it came back to life along with the radio which struggled to tune and let loose the cracky almost unrecognizable noise of Gallery's _Nice to Be With You_. Pegging these down as demon signs, Castiel quickly searched the few aisles for salt and began pouring it across the window ledge. His progress was stopped however when the faint ringing noise increased in volume and pitch, getting so high that it broke all of the glass and sent Castiel to the floor with his hands over his ears.

As soon as it was over, Castiel jumped into the first empty car he could find and high-tailed it to Sioux Falls.

#

_"Surprise."_

Bobby hadn't believed it was really his adopted son talking to him across the phone until he saw him in person. Dirt, along with sweat, was covering just about every inch of his skin and his normally dark brown hair looked paler do to the dust. Bobby however, didn't seem to change a bit, still wearing his old baseball cap and plaid outfit. He wasn't put to ease though until Castiel had cut himself with a silver knife and didn't react.

"It's good to see you, boy." Bobby said in his gruff voice after releasing Castiel from a tight hug. He replied with a hoarse_ you too_ before Bobby continued to speak. "But how did you bust out?"

"I don't know," Castiel replied in a slightly breathless voice. "I just woke up in a pine box-" his words being cut of by the holy water Bobby threw at his face. Turning to the side, he spit the water out of his mouth before saying, "Not a demon, either." He wipes his hand over his face to get rid of the remaining water and pauses.

"Now, where's Samandriel?"

"Last I seen 'em was the day your deal came. He just up and left after that. I've tried to call him, but he 'ain't answering any of my calls." He replied, worry showing in his voice. As soon as Castiel hears that, he grabs Bobby's computer and begins typing in the website for the cellphone he typed away he listened Bobby saying he'd never be able to track him, but he didn't his brother like Castiel did.

#

_"So, where is it?"_

A confused expression washes over Castiel's face when greeted by the brunette in her tank tops and shorts, wondering if they had somehow gotten the wrong room. And what the heck was she talking about? He asks what she's looking for and understands when she questions where her pizza was.

"I think we've got the wrong room," Castiel replies, a bit of laughter and sadness in his voice. He was just about to turn around and walk away to try and find our where the fuck Samandriel was when he sees him.

"Hey, is-" Samandriel begins, but stops short when his gaze lands on his supposed-to-be dead older brother. They sort of stand their in silence for a few seconds, a slight, not quite even there smile upon Castiel's face and a confused, surprised expression on Samandriel's.

"Hello, Alfie." Castiel quips, using Samandriel's childhood nickname which only they understood to name him. He just sort of stands there in the room, his chest heaving just a little bit with the deep, ragged breaths he's taking before Castiel goes to step into the room. As soon as he's over the threshold, Alfie's on him with a silver knife, pushing him up against the door jamb. Bobby's quick to step in between them though, shoving the brothers apart.

"Who are you!?" Samandriel shouts, Bobby still holding him back as he tries to go at Castiel again.

"Like you didn't do this?" Castiel says back, his tone slightly calmer and the accusation that Samandriel had brought him back to life written all over his face.

"Do what!?" Samandriel questions angrily, as Bobby tries to tell him that it's really Castiel. That it's really his _dead_ brother who was ripped up by hellhounds in front of his own eyes. When their adopted father's words finally reach his ears, he slowly relaxes as tears build in his eyes which are filled with a million questions. _How? Why? Who did this? You're supposed to be dead._ Without a second thought, he's walking towards Castiel before finally enveloping him in the tightest hug possible, as if he has to break his ribs just to make sure _he's here, he's really here. He's not dead, he's here. Living and breathing, right before my eyes._

Their feelings are almost palpable in that moment, more so Samandriel's than Castiel's, but it's broken by the girl who had answered the door asking, "So are you two, like, together?"

#

_"I promise, I didn't do it, Castiel."_

Castiel easily believes Samandriel when he tells him that it wasn't he who had brought Castiel back to life, but someone else. However, he wasn't surprised that Samandriel had been trying to make deals with demons who wouldn't comply and researching just about everything he could find that might bring his brother back. He was glad to hear that he wasn't using his powers either, no matter how badly he wanted to. Castiel understood how he had felt, knowing his brother was dead and not being able to do anything about it, except that there was actually something he could do.

"So, if you weren't the one who got me out, why are you here?" Castiel asked, his head tilting to the side like the always did when he had a question. His blue eyes stared intensely at Samandriel, almost as if he was trying to see through his brother's soul.

"I was just following some demons," Samandriel replies. "All of a sudden they had just up and left, heading for here. Do you think it has to do with you getting out?"

"I would think so. They're probably looking for the same answers we are."

"Well, I'll you what." Bobby begins, catching both of the boys attention. "Why don't we go visit an old friend of mine? She's a psychic and might be able to help us figure out who - or what - pulled you out of hell."

#

_"Bobby!"_

Pamela was quite excited to see her old friend once again and seem even more pleased with the attractive company he had brought along. While Castiel thought that she was attractive as well, his purpose in coming here wasn't to hook up with the psychic but to get information from her. There was no changing his mind about that either, once Castiel had a goal in mind he stuck to it until it was reached. He'd leave Pamela for Samandriel to sleep with if he so wished.

Pamela invited them in, setting up the table for the seance and having each of them sit in a chair around the table. She had placed a black piece of circle cloth with some sort of star symbol on the table as well as five lit candles in the middle. She directed them to all hold each other hands and they followed her words without any complaints.

"And I need to touch something our mystery monster touched," She said, squeezing Castiel's thigh and causing his leg to jump, his knee hitting the underside of the table.

"Well, he didn't touch me there." Castiel clipped, clearing his throat before pulling his arm out of his trench coat and rolling up the sleeve of his grey t-shirt, revealing the red handprint. Samandriel's breath hitched a bit, nearing having seen the scar before then and wondering why Castiel hadn't mentioned it. He shared a glance with Bobby, but pushed his thoughts to the back of his mind as Pamela placed her hand over it to begin the seance.

Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and began talking in a steady voice. "I invoke, conjure and command you, appear unto me before this circle." She repeated the phrase a couple times, Castiel opening one of his eyes to take a peek at Pamela. As she talked, the TV in the room flicked on and slight ringing noise began in the background. "I invoke, conjure and command y- _Diniel_?" Castiel opened both eyes at that name, staring at Pamela with curiosity. "No, sorry, Diniel, I don't scare easy."

"I invoke, conjure and command you, show me your face." She repeated the phrase once more, her voice louder in volume and filled with power. The ringing noise once again increased, the table shaking along with it until Pamela screamed. Her eyes burned out as the flames on the candles rose intensely like some had lit a flame thrower. The whole room was in a panic, Bobby checking on Pamela as she choked out sobs and broken murmurs of _my eyes, Bobby, my eyes._ Meanwhile Samandriel was in the kitchen, dialing 911.

#

_"Are you sure you want to do this without your brother?"_

Bobby asked for the millionth time, looking at Castiel warily. They were standing in an old barn near where Castiel was buried, working on covering the walls with symbols from every religion they could think of. Some of them were ancient, dating way back and found in the most worn out books. It was times like these when Castiel was really grateful for Bobby's house-library.

"I'm sure, Bobby." Castiel answered with a sigh, tired of this conversation already. While it would've been nice to have brother with him, he really didn't want that. Not only was he worried for his safety, but he didn't want this monster to reveal anything he wasn't willing to share. He also had the suspicious feeling that Samandriel was up to his own plan anyways.

Bobby huffed out a breath, but kept quiet as he continued spray painting the walls and floor. While he did that, Castiel checked over their weapons, making sure the guns were loaded properly and wouldn't jam. They were finished with the task of warding the barn soon enough, having traps that would capture just about everything and anything.

As Bobby read off the ritual, Castiel stood leaning against the table holding all of their weapons. His back was stiff and erect, a gun full of rock salt shells in his calloused hands. When he was done reading and nothing had happened, he figure Bobby must've read it wrong but before he could ask the wind outside picked up. It whipped itself at the barn, the roof shingles bouncing dangerously and loudly. Slowly, the barn doors broke open and in walked what looked like a regular human except he gave off too powerful of an aura. He was definitely anything _but_ a human.

While he walked towards them in a casual stroll, the lights overhead sparked and burst, raining down on him. The sound of gunshots rang through the air as the two hunters fired bullets at him but nothing worked. He simply kept on walking as if her was never shot in the first place. One wouldn't have guessed he was, if not for the bullet holes in his plaid t-shirt.

When he reached the spot right in front of Castiel, he stopped walking and peered curiously at him.

"Who are you?" Castiel asked, staring back with cold eyes.

"I'm the one who gripped your sorry ass and raised it from perdition." Who he assumed to be Diniel, replied with a smirk. He seemed quite satisfied with himself, whether it be because of his line or the fact that he successfully brought Castiel back to life was unclear.

"Yeah, thanks for that." Castiel replied shortly. The guy opened his mouth to speak, but before he could Castiel plunged the demon knife through his jacket and straight into his heart. With an almost exasperated expression, the creature grabbed the knife handle and drew it out, letting it drop to the floor loudly. Behind him, bobby was aiming to knock him out with a crowbar to the head but he stopped it with his hand and quickly placed two fingers on his forehead. Bobby's eyes rolled closed as he dropped to the floor, seemingly unconscious.

Now that everyone was dealt with, the creature turned back to Castiel and spoke his first words. "We need to talk," He said, his voice rich and deep. Then he glanced down at Castiel's adopted father. "Alone."

#

_"Who are you?"_

Castiel asked, once he was sure Bobby was indeed okay. His blue eyes were hardened with hesitancy and anger, wondering what the heck was going on. Like always, his head was tipped slightly to the side.

"The names Diniel, but call me Dean." He replied, flipping absently through one of the books on the table before examining their weapons. Castiel uneasily took a step towards him, feeling a teensy bit better now that he knew his name.

"Yeah, I figured out that much." Castiel said, catching Dean's attention. "I mean, _what_ are you?"

"I'm an angel of the lord."

"Yeah right, there's no such thing." Castiel scoffed back, subconsciously fingering the amulet Samandriel had given him which sat around his neck.

"This is your problem, Castiel, you have no faith." Dean sighed dramatically, turning and pacing a few feet away from the stubborn hunter. He stopped in the middle of the barn and outside the wind picked up again. Thunder sounded and lightning flashed, illuminating the long black shadows of huge, jagged wings upon the barn wall. They were intimidating, almost as if they were asking Castiel to say he didn't exist another time. But even then, when they disappeared he was still reluctant to believe that he really was an angel.

"Well some angel you are, you burned out that poor woman's eyes." Castiel quipped, annoyance and aggravation clear in his voice.

"I warned her not to spy on my true form, it's not my fault you humans don't listen." Dean said back, stepping closer by just a few inches or so. "It can be overwhelming to humans, so can my true voice, but you already knew that."

"You mean the gas station and the motel? That was you talking?" At Dean's nod, Castiel kept speaking. "Next time, lower the volume."

"That was my mistake," Dean replied, his tone sincere and tinted with a bit of guilt. "Certain people - special people- can perceive my true visage, I thought you were one of them. But I was proven wrong."

"Then what_ visage_ are you in now, huh? Holy car mechanic?"

"This? This is a vessel," Dean replied, toying with the edges of the leather jacket that Castiel had ruined. It was okay though, he was able to fix it.

"You're possessing some poor bastard?" Castiel questioned, liking this angel less and less by the second. He could understand demons possessing someone, they had no morals only a desire to wreak havoc, but angels? If they truly did exist then Castiel expected more from them.

"He was a devout man, he - he actually prayed for this."

"Look, I'm not buying what you're selling," Castiel spoke, his voice taut with disbelief and his body filled with an urge to get away from this guy.

"I told you," Dean said back, Castiel muttering a _'yeah right'_ underneath his breath.

"And why would an _angel,_" He paused, putting as much force into that word as possible. "rescue me from hell?"

"Good things do happen, Cas." The angel replied and Castiel shivered at the nickname, not quite sure what to make of it. No one had ever given him one before, he had always just gone by his full name.

"Not in my experience."

"What's the matter?" Dean asked, his face regaining a curious and sad expression all of a sudden as he tipped his head to the side. His emerald green eyes seemed to be looking for something in Cas and when he found it, a look of understanding crossed over his features. "You don't think you _deserve_ to be saved."

It was more of a statement than question and Castiel desperately wanted this conversation to be over already. Ignoring that comment he instead asked, "Why'd you do it?"

"Because God commanded it. Because we have work for you."


	2. Are You There God? It's Me, Castiel

**Chapter Two: Are You there, God? It's Me, Castiel Novak.**

**[A/N]: The characters and quotes from episode 4x2 do not belong to me. All rights go to their respectful owners.**

**Feel free to tell me if I make any mistakes. **

* * *

_"Well then tell me what else it could be."_

Samandriel questioned, staring at Castiel with his brown eyes. He couldn't understand why his brother was so hesitant to believe in angels. You'd think he would, having met one already.

"I don't know, all I know is that I was not rescued by some angel." Castiel retorted, leaning against the front of Bobby's desk. The older hunter sat behind it, a bunch of dusty brown books sitting atop it. Across from him, Samandriel was sitting down.

"Okay, look, Castiel." Samandriel said with a reprimanding look. "Why do you think this Dean would lie to you?"

"Maybe he's some kind of demon." Castiel replied, unwilling to believe that angels existed. Samandriel huffed out a breath as Bobby looked up at them. "Demons lie."

"A demon who's immune to salt rounds and devil's traps... " He paused for a second. "and Ruby's knife? Castiel, Lilith is scared of that thing!" Samandriel spat back, getting tired of Castiel's excuses to not believe in Dean.

"Don't you think that if angels were real, that some hunter somewhere would have seen one at some point... ever?" Castiel questioned, tilting his head. He was running out of options as to why these angels didn't and couldn't exist. He refused to believe it, even with the proof staring him in the face.

"Yeah!" Samandriel exclaimed. "You're a hunter and you just did."

"I'm trying to come up with a theory, okay? Work with me."

"Castiel, we have a theory!"

"Yeah, okay. Can I get one that's a little more believable?"

"Okay, look." Samandriel sighed. "I'm not saying we know for sure. I'm just saying that I think we -"

"Okay, okay. That's the point." Castiel said, cutting his brother off. "We don't know for sure, so I'm not gonna believe that this thing is a freaking Angel of the Lord because it says so!"

"You two idjits want to keep arguing religion or do you want to take a look at this?" Bobby questioned, stopping their argument. Samandriel felt a bit relieved, not wanting to fight with Castiel so soon after getting him back. Samandriel stop up to walk towards the desk, while Castiel just had to turn around.

"I got stacks of lore - Biblical, pre-Biblical." He said, motioning towards the books. "Some of it's in damn cuneiform. It all says an angel can snatch a soul from the pit."

"What else?" Castiel asked.

"What else, what?"

"What else could do it?"

"Drag your ass out of the pit? A far as I can see, nothing." Bobby said. Castiel felt like yelling, like grabbing every lore book he could find. He refused to believe any of this bullshit.

"Cas, this is good news." Samandriel declared, using the nickname Dean had given him. It felt weird hearing it come from his brother, almost as if Dean was the only one who had the rights to use it like Castiel did with the name Alfie. He fidgeted uneasily as Samandriel placed a hand on his shoulder. "For once, this isn't just a round of demon trouble, I mean, maybe you were finally saved by one of the good guys?"

"Okay say it's true, say there are angels. Then, what? There's a God?"

"At this point, the money's on yeah." Bobby chipped in.

"Look, I know you're not all choirboy about this, Castiel," Samandriel said. "But this is becoming less and less about faith and more about proof."

"Proof?" Castiel asked, tilting his head at his brother. At his 'yeah' he kept speaking. "Proof that there's a God out there that gives a crap about me? I'm sorry, but I'm not buying any of it. I mean, I saved some people, okay? I figured that made up for all the bad shit of I've done, but why do I deserve to get saved?"

"Apparently you're important to the man upstairs." Samandriel supplied, as if that answered all of their questions. Castiel huffed out a breath, crossing his arms over his chest before directing his gaze to Bobby.

"What do we know about angels?" Bobby picked up the pile of fat, heavy books which sat on his desk and dropped them in front of Castiel, telling him to start reading. With a quick glance between the books and his brother Castiel said, "You're going to get me some burgers."

#

_"Yes, Castiel, I'll get the chips... Dude. When have I ever forgotten the bacon? Exactly."_

As Samandriel exited the Impala, he spotted Ruby standing outside the café. She was tugging on her jacket nervously, as if she wanted to be anywhere other than here. Samandriel slowly walked up to her, hanging up with Castiel along the way. "Ruby."

"So is it true?" Ruby asked, skipping the greetings and heading straight towards business. "Did an angel rescue Castiel?"

"You heard." Sam said, it coming out as more of a statement than a question. Ruby looked at him for a second like he had a loose gear before saying_ who hasn't?_ "We're not one hundred percent sure, but I think so."

"Okay, bye Samandriel." Ruby replied, turning around to start walking away. Samandriel however, caught her sleeve and turned her back towards him.

"Wait, what's going on?"

"They're angels, I'm a demon." She pointed out. "They're not gonna care if I'm helping you guys. They smite first, then ask questions later."

"What do you know about them?"

"Not much. I've met one, nor do I want to." She turned to walk away again, stopping to look back at Samandriel. "All I know is that they scare the holy hell out of me. Watch yourself, Samandriel."

"I'm not scared of angels."

Samandriel could hear Ruby's scoff as she walked away.

#

_"Keep the car running."_

Bobby said as soon as Samandriel pulled up to his house. He looked curiously at him, but didn't ask questions. As Bobby went to his own truck, Castiel slid into the driver's side after pushing Sam over. While he may not have loved the car as much as others probably would have, Castiel wasn't comfortable with anyone but himself driving it. It was the only thing which was ever constant in their lives, besides Bobby of course.

"Where are we going?" Samandriel asked as Bobby pulled out and Castiel followed behind him.

"Bobby's been trying to reach his friend Olivia," Castiel replied. "She's a hunter and he's been trying to get information from her on this angel thing. We're gonna go check on her."

When they arrive at Olivia's house, the sight they're greeted with is not what that had wanted. She's laying on the floor, dead and covered in her own blood. There's a heavy salt line in the doorway and her EMF reader is off the charts.

"Spirit activity." Samandriel says, pointing out the obvious.

"Yeah, one on steroids." Castiel snorts. "I've never seen a ghost do this to a person."

"I called some hunters nearby," Bobby says, walking back into the room. "..except they 'ain't answer any of their phones either."

#

_"They've redecorated... in red." _

The three hunters go around checking on just about every hunter in the area, Castiel going with Samandriel and Bobby all by himself. Each person that had visited had been rip to shreds, their chests popped open and blood splattered everywhere.

"What the hell is going on, Bobby?" Castiel asked across the phone. "Why are ghosts killing a bunch of hunters all of a sudden?"

"I don't know, but you boys better get your asses to my place so we can figure it out." Bobby directed, hanging up after Castiel replied. The Novak brothers kept driving back in the direction of Bobby's house, stopping at a service station. Samandriel got out to pump gas, while Castiel snoozed away in the passenger seat.

He went to use the bathroom and while washing his hands he breathes out and is able to see his breath. Startled, he jerks his head as the mirror gets covered with mist and wipes it away to see a familiar face.

"Hi, Samandriel," Henriksen says. "It's been a while."

"Henriksen. Are you - Did you..." Samandriel stutters on the words, not quite sure what to say to him. The last time he had seen him was when Lilith and her demons were attacking, and as far as he knew Henriksen hadn't survived her wrath.

"I didn't survive, if that's what you're asking." He replied, answering his unspoken question.

"I'm sorry." Samandriel said, the guilt and sincerity showing in his eyes.

"I know you are."

"Look if we'd known Lilith was coming-" Samandriel began, only to be cut off by Henriksen.

"You wouldn't have left half a dozen innocent people in that police station to die in your place." Henriksen said, taking the words right out of his mouth. "You did this to me. It was your fault. She was after you, and I paid the price. You left us there to die!" The anger was clear in his voice.

Before Samandriel could say another word, Henriksen charged at him, grabbing him hard and throwing him around. While he's getting beat up, Samandriel notices a strange brand upon Henriksen's hand. Before he can get a good look though, he's thrown against the mirror and falls, knocking his hand on the sink. Luckily for him, his big brother enters then and shoots Henriksen.

#

_"Damn it, Bobby, pick up!"_

After dealing with Henriksen's spirit, they were on their way back to Bobby's house. The only problem was that Bobby wasn't answering his phone. Grumbling, Castiel flipped shut his phone, turning to look at Samandriel.

"Henriksen?" He questioned.

"Yeah."

"What did he want?"

"Revenge, cause we got him killed." There was a sad tone to his voice, one that said he truly believed the agent's death was his fault. Castiel looked over at him with incredulous expression, "_Alfie__-"_

"Well, we did, Cas." He said, using Dean's nickname again.

"No, stop right there. Whatever the hell is happening, it's happening to us okay?" Castiel said, interrupting whatever Samandriel was thinking. He refused to let his brother believe that anything bad was his fault. He'd gladly take the blame, just to get some of the weight off of Samandriel's shoulders. "I can't get ahold of Bobby, so if you're not thinking answers, don't think at all."

#

"_Bobby?"_

When the finally reached Bobby's house, they couldn't find him. Inside the house, the saw the iron poker laying on the ground next to the stairwell. Castiel tells Samandriel to check outside and he goes willingly, worried about their adopted father. While he's doing that Castiel makes his way upstairs. As he looked around, one of the room's doors creaked open, catching his attention.

"Is anybody there?" He calls into the doorway. "Come out, whoever you are."

"Castiel Novak." A female voice interrupts from behind him. He spins around to see a girl with shoulder length brown hair staring back at him. "Don'tcha recognize me?" He focuses on her features for a second, trying to remember who she is and where's she from. Recognition lights in his eyes and her lips lift in an almost-smile. "This is what I looked like before that demon cut off my hair and dressed me like a slut."

"Meg?" He asked, his voice filled with surprise.

"It's okay, I'm not a demon anymore."

"You're just the girl the demon possessed.."

"Meg Masters. Nice to finally talk to you when I'm not, you know, choking on my blood." Castiel opened his mouth to speak, but she raised her hand, stopping him. "It's okay. Seriously, I'm just a college girl. Sorry - _was_. I was walking home one night and got jumped by all this smoke. Next thing you know, I'm a prisoner..." She placed her hand on her head. "In here. I was awake, I had to watch her murder people."

"I'm so sorry, Meg." Castiel said, the guilt rising in his gut. He knew it was his fault she had gotten killed and didn't need her to say it. While one may think that by then he'd have forgiven himself, he always thought about the people he couldn't save and the ones he'd gotten murdered.

"Oh, yeah? So sorry you had me thrown off a building?"

"Well, we thought -" He began, Meg cutting his words short.

"No, you didn't think! I kept waiting, praying!" She exclaimed, stepping towards him. There were tears in her eyes, a mixture of sadness and anger in her voice. "I was trapped in there screaming at you! _"Just help me, please!"_ You're supposed to help people, Castiel. _Why didn't you help me?_"

"I'm sorry."

"Stop saying you're sorry!" She shouted, slapping him across the face and knocking him to the floor. He murmured her name while she kicked him in the side, groaning in pain. "You just attacked. Did you ever think there was a girl in here?_ No_. You just charged in, slashing and burning. You think you're some kind of hero?"

"I don't," He replied. "I don't, Meg."

Leaning down she grabbed a hold of his trench coat, yanking him towards her. Castiel glimpsed at her hand, catching sight of the strange brand that Samandriel had seen on Henriksen.

"You're damn right. Do you have any idea what it's like to be ridden for months by pure evil... while your family has no idea what happened to you?" She spat in his face.

"We did the best we could." Meg laughed, shoving him once before sending another hard kick to his body.

#

"_Are you scared, Bobby?" _

Out in the yard, Samandriel searched beneath every car and inside every trunk hoping to find the old hunter. Little did he know that he had walked past him once or twice now, frantically shouting out his name.

"We were scared, Bobby." The second little girl said, her sister talking afterwards.

"When the monster came for us... and grabbed us tight."

"And we couldn't even scream. You were right there, Bobby."

"You were in the house."

"You were so close."

Samandriel stopped walking when he huffed and was able to see his breath. Looking back and forth, he shouted. "Bobby! We're here, Bobby!"

"You could have saved us, Bobby."

"You walked right past that door."

"The monster had us. And you didn't find us."

"_And now they won't find you._"

#

_"It wasn't just me, Castiel. I had a sister."_

"A little sister. She worshipped me. You know how little siblings are, right? How they'll do anything for you. She was never the same after I disappeared. She just... she just got lost. And when my body was lying in the morgue beat-up and broken... " Her voice started out angry, fading into a soft and whispering tone full of despair. "Do you know what that did to her? She killed herself!" Meg spat, kicking Castiel again.

"Because of you, Castiel!" Her voice drifting back into anger. "Because all you were thinking about was your family, your revenge, and your demons! 50 words of Latin a little sooner, and I'd still be alive. _My baby sister would still be alive._ That blood is on your hands, Castiel!"

"You're right." Castiel groaned.

#

_"Bobby! Hold on, Bobby! I'm coming! Bobby!"_

Samandriel had spotted a reflection in one of the car windows, the shape looking like Bobby. He quickly climbed the cars, stopping at the one Bobby was being held in and using a crowbar to open. The little girls push him down onto another car, one of the twins jumping on him. Before she could do any damage he swipes the crowbar through her while Bobby deals with the other one.

#

"_Come on, Castiel!" _

Inside the house, Castiel was still dealing with Meg's spirit. Scooting away from her with his legs and upper body, he pulls his gun out and aims it towards her. She scoffs at him like he's stupid, "Did your brain get french-fried in Hell? You can't shoot me with bullets."

"I'm not shooting you," He replied, angling his aim upwards and shooting the ceiling. The iron chandelier falls and lands on her, dissipating her spirit. He quickly gets up and makes his way downstairs, meeting Samandriel and Bobby in the study.

#

"_So they're all people we know?"_

"Not just people we know, it's people we couldn't save." Castiel points out. "I saw something on Meg. Did she have a tattoo when she was alive?"

"I don't think she did." Samandriel replied. "Why?"

"I-I saw a mark- almost like a brand- on her hand."

"I saw one on Henriksen, too."

"What did it look like?" Bobby asked.

"Paper?" Samandriel asked, Bobby offering some. He takes it and grabs a pen, sketching the mark to the best of his abilities. When he's done, he holds it up for Castiel to see and he nods, "That's it."

"I might've seen that before. C'mon, we gotta move." Bobby replied. "Follow me."

"Where are we going?"

"Some place safe." The boys followed Bobby downstairs into his basement. Once there, he leads them to his safe room which is made of iron and completely covered in salt. The room is full of pentagrams and Devil's trap. It also has several weapons, as well as small cot. Castiel hummed his approval, his appreciation for Bobby rising by several levels. This room would come in handy.

#

_"This is why I can't get behind the idea of God." _

Later while the boys were making rock-salt shells was when Castiel felt it was an appropiate time to bring up their earlier arguement. All day he'd been thinking about it, questioning himself and Samandriel's belief in angels and more importantly God. The fights with the ghosts had pushed it away, but now that they were dealt with for the time being the thoughts came rushing back.

"What are you talking about?" Samandriel asked, pausing in his work.

"I mean, if he doesn't exist, okay fine. Bad crap happens to good people." Castiel replied, continuing to make the shells. "But if he does exist, then what the hell is he doing? Why would he just let all these decent people get killed? How does he live with himself when he could be helping us?"

There was silence between the brothers, neither one of them commenting on what Castiel had said. Samandriel knew that there was nothing he could do to defend God in this situation and he actually agreed with Castiel. If he did exist, why isn't he helping? He supposed that maybe that was how it was, maybe God created these creatures and decided that his work was done, that they had to figure things out for themselves.

"I found it." Bobby piped up from the other side of the room, breaking the tension in the air. "The symbol you guys saw on the ghosts.. it's the Mark of the Witness."

"Witness to what?"

"The unnatural. None of these people died what you'd call a normal death." Bobby said, going onto explain why they were here. "These ghosts.. they were forced to rise. The woke up in agony, like rabid dogs. It isn't their fault that they're here. Someone else rose them.. on purpose."

"What? Who?" Castiel asked, head tilting.

"Do I like I know?" Bobby remarked and Castiel dropped his head a bit. "But whoever it was used a spell so powerful it left a brand on their souls. It's call 'The Rising of the Witnesses'. It fits into an ancient prophecy."

Bobby hesitated for a moment, "Revelations.. It's a sign."

"A sign of what?" This time it was Samandriel who asked the question.

"_The Apocalypse."_

"Apocalypse? The apocalypse, apocalypse? The four horsemen, pestilence, $5-a-gallon-gas apocalypse?" Castiel questioned, his interest in the situation spiking. He'd heard a lot of crazy things in his life, most of which happened to be true, but this was by far the most insane, out-there idea ever.

"Yeah. The Rising of the Witnesses is like a mile-marker."

"Okay, so what do we do now?"

"Let's figure out how to survive these witnesses first before we do anything else."

#

_"Great job with the witnesses, Cas." _

Castiel had awoke with a start in the middle of night, getting up off Bobby's living room floor and coming face to face with Dean in the kitchen. He hadn't see him since three days ago when they met and seeing him sent a pulse of anger through him. He didn't know whether it was from the fact that he left him earlier with absolutely none of his questions answered or if it was because he knew what was going on.

"You were made hip to this?" He asked, deciding to be angry at him for the witnesses first. The barn incident could be handled later.

"I was made aware, yes." Dean replied, curiously looking through Bobby's kitchen drawers as quietly as possibly.

"Well, thanks for the angelic assistance back there." Castiel retorted sarcastically. "We could've used your help, you know."

"But you didn't need it." He said, stopping his rumage through the drawers. He picked up some herbs looking at them blankly before continuing his search. "Bobby Singer has quite the collection of useful items. You managed to figure it out on your own."

"I thought angels were supposed to be guardians." Castiel commented, catching Dean's full attention. "You know, fluffy wings and halos, not dicks." _  
_

"Read the bible, dude. Angels are warriors of God, I'm a soldier." Dean corrected, straightening his stance and looking into Castiel's eyes. If he thought before that his eyes were the kind that could see through souls, then Dean's emerald ones must've been able to see even further than that. They seemed to glow and flicked with specks of a darker green and a hint of gold.

"Then why didn't you fight?"

"I'm not here to perch on your shoulder, _Cas._" He spat, looking outraged at the fact that he was accused of not taking part in the fight. "We had larger concerns than you."

"Concerns!? People were getting torn to shreds down here!" Cas exclaimed. "By the way, while all of this is going on, where your boss, _huh_? Does God even exist?"

"There's a God."

"Oh really? I'm not convinced. 'Cause if there's a God, what the hell is he waiting for? Genocide? Monsters roaming the earth? The freaking apocalypse? At what point does he lift a damn finger and help us out?" Castiel asked, getting up into Dean's personal space, to which the angel took a step back. Cas wanted to see it as him being intimidated by him, but knew it was probably more of a personal space issue.

"The Lord works-"

"Don't you dare say _in mysterious ways." _Castiel interrupted, trying to calm down. He knew arguing with the angel probably wouldn't get him anything more than broken bones. "So, Bobby was right... about the witnesses. This is some kind of a..." He paused, not wanting to say it. The concept of it felt so much more real once it was said aloud and personally, he didn't want that. "..sign of the apocalypse."

"Yeah, that's why we're here. Big things ahead."

"Do I want to know what kind of things?"

"Probably not, but you'll need to know anyways." Dean smirked, shoving his hands into his vessel's jean pockets. The movement seemed so natural that Castiel had to question whether this was the angel's first time being on Earth. He sincerely doubted it was with his behavior and choice of words. "The Rising of the Witnesses in one of the sixty-six seals. Those seals are being broken by Lilith."

"She did the spell. She rose the witnesses." It came out as more of a statement than a question, Dean 'mhmm-ing' in response.

"And it wasn't just here. Twenty other hunters are dead as well." He made it sound as if the whole event was no big deal, as if it happened everyday.

"Of course. She picked victims that the hunters couldn't save so that they would barrel right after us."

"Lilith has a certain sense of humor."

"Well, we put those spirits to rest." Castiel said, pointing out the obvious.

"Yes, you did, but the seal was still broken."

"Why break the seal anyway?" His head tilted to the side again. It didn't make sense for Lilith to break the seals just for fun, even if she did get joy from murdering others and making them work for her.

"Think of the seals as a lock on the door.." Dean replied, his voice lowering an octave and his tone getting darker.

"The last one's unlocked and?"

"Lucifer walks free."

"Lucifer?" Castiel questioned. "But I thought Lucifer was just a story they told at demon Sunday school. There's no such thing."

"Three days ago, you thought there was no such thing as _me_." Dean pointed out, crossing his arms over his chest. "Why do you think we're here walking among you now for the first time in 2,000 years?"

"To stop Lucifer."

"That's why we've arrived."

"Well... bang-up job so far. Stellar work with the witnesses. That's nice." Castiel complimented, his voice dripping with sarcasm. If these guys wanted to stop Lucifer, they needed to do a better job.

"We tried. And there are other battles, other seals. Some we'll win, some we'll lose. This one we lost." Dean replied, his expression harderning. "Our numbers are not unlimited. Six of my brothers died in the field this week. You think the armies of Heaven should just follow you around? There's a bigger picture here." He growled, stepping back into Castiel's personal space. "You should show me some respect. _I dragged you out of Hell. I can throw you back in." _

Before Castiel can reply, the angel disappears in a flutter of wings.

The next morning, Castiel asks Samandriel if he believes in the devil.


End file.
